3.10.2015

Ghost Puppet - rods n cables

Ghostbusters subway ghost

I have decided to go with a ghost, spook, spectre for my first rod and cable puppet, using my video tutorial from Stan Winston school as a guide. The puppet will be built up from, and remain mounted to, a base board which will help limit movement so that I can focus on the head mechanism. The "spine" of the puppet will be made from flexible toilet bowl tubing which will allow my pup to sway and hover. It will most likely be painted in purples and blues, except for the area nearest the wood base which will be black along with the base and my pants and shoes, to create the illusion of a fading ghostly figure. I have to continually remind myself that this is a "live" puppet and not initially intended for film (my inclination would be to paint the bottom green for chroma keying, or to simply "composite" the pup with a digitally induced fade). It will be challenging I think to try to capture the fade with a paintjob, but I have faith. I will probably start slapping clay on this guy in the next day or two.

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I am Jeffrey Roché...

...an artist, exploring techniques in any and all media, though some of my favorites include charcoal, acrylic & oil painting, and woodcut printmaking. My focus over the past five years or so has been stop-motion animation, which draws on every ounce of my creativity, from sculpting and painting to photography, and everything in between.

No matter which medium I am working in, my themes remain consistent. I consider myself to be a Modern Magical Realist, incorporating magical or mythical elements into otherwise everyday settings and situations. Magic exists in the mundane, all around us in daily life, but especially here in New Orleans. There is a mystical vibe in this city that inspires me as an artist. I've felt it all my life, under the moss-covered oaks of City Park, on the wrought-iron balconies of the French Quarter, near the banks of the Mighty Mississippi, or amidst the cold marble of Lafayette Cemetery.